Waitin’ in the Country

That mane of blond locks you see on the cover of this North Carolina native’s debut isn’t totally misleading—the liveliest tracks on Waitin’ in the Country have a rock ’n’ roll kick, and the lyrics’ internal rhymes occasionally suggest hip-hop. But like Joe Nichols before him, this longhair has an old-fashioned hard-country voice that lends authenticity to everything from party anthems to the grim child-abuse parable (and Top 10 hit) “Alyssa Lies.” When Jason gets hold of a killer tune like “Angel of Broken Hearts,” it’s obvious there’s more to this guy than a nice head of hair.